Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

RCKT has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America raised their price target on Rocket Pharmaceuticals from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rocket Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.88.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of RCKT stock opened at $3.43 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $3.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.65. Rocket Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $2.53 and a 52 week high of $5.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $374.52 million, a PE ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 6.12, a current ratio of 6.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.42) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.41) by ($0.01). During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.56) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Rocket Pharmaceuticals will post -1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Pharmaceuticals

In other Rocket Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Gaurav Shah sold 55,684 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.09, for a total value of $172,063.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,061,724 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,280,727.16. This trade represents a 4.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sarbani Chaudhuri sold 17,650 shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.84, for a total transaction of $67,776.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 267,510 shares in the company, valued at $1,027,238.40. This represents a 6.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 83,733 shares of company stock valued at $275,307 over the last 90 days. 21.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocket Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 148.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 163,622 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,091,000 after purchasing an additional 97,758 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 121.8% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 747,147 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,983,000 after buying an additional 410,238 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at about $189,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 24.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 995,690 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $6,641,000 after buying an additional 192,905 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,030,891 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,976,000 after buying an additional 36,847 shares in the last quarter. 98.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Rocket Pharmaceuticals

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing gene therapies for rare, inherited pediatric diseases. The company employs a proprietary adeno-associated virus (AAV) and lentiviral vector platform to deliver functional copies of genes in patients with genetic deficiencies. Its programs target a spectrum of disorders, including Fanconi anemia, leukocyte adhesion deficiency type I and Danon disease, with the goal of delivering one-time treatments that address the underlying causes of disease rather than merely managing symptoms.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple product candidates in various stages of development.